One is reminded of Harold Macmillan's famous saying about "Events, dear boy, events." Of course when he said it, he was referring to the dangers that can beset a government and blow it off course, but the past couple of weeks have shown that "events" can sometimes come to a government's rescue, too.
And so to the reshuffle. Instead of fantasising about replacing Alistair Darling with Ed Balls - and let's be thankful for Labour's sake that it remained in the realms of fantasy - Mr Brown is instead to carry out some limited changes to the lower reaches of his Cabinet.
Here are three potential scenarios, depending on how "limited" Mr Brown wants to be.
The not-very-limited-at-all reshuffle
Tony McNulty to become Transport Secretary
Jim Murphy to become Nations and Regions Secretary
Shaun Woodward to become Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ed Miliband to become Business Secretary
John Hutton to become Defence Secretary
Nick Brown to become Chief Whip
Paul Murphy, Des Browne, Geoff Hoon and Ruth Kelly to leave the government
The fairly limited reshuffle
Ed Miliband to become Transport Secretary
Paul Murphy to become Nations and Regions Secretary
Shaun Woodward to become Minister for the Cabinet Office
Ruth Kelly to leave the government
The extremely limited reshuffle
Tony McNulty to become Transport Secretary
Ruth Kelly to leave the government
October 3 Debrief: Well, I was right about, Hutton, Nick Brown and Des Browne, wrong about everyone else. C'est la vie.
4 comments:
Why would a no hoper like Mcnulty get any job?
Why would a no hoper like Mcnulty get any job?
Shhhh! Anything that winkles that thug out of the Home Office is fine by me.
The Mail is tipping Liam Byrne to become some sort of cabinet enforcer!
Mandys coming back, now that takes the biscuit, unless its part of the "cunning plan".
I don't think anyone saw that coming by a long shot.
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